September 2023
26Sep

India. Around 90% regret not saving early for retirement, shows study

It is important to start saving early for retirement. In a recently-concluded study, it was revealed that a vast majority of people (90%) wish they had initiated retirement savings earlier, underscoring the significance of proactive financial planning. The study also revealed that Western India shows the least sense of security towards a peaceful retirement life compared to other zones. The India Retirement Index Study (IRIS), carried out by Max Life Insurance in partnership with Kantar, also revealed deep insights into the...

September 26, 2023
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22Sep

The Future of Global Retirement

By Andrew Evans & Will Wynne Smart is a world-leading retirement technology provider. Our mission is to transform retirement, savings and financial wellbeing, across all generations, around the world. Launched in 2015, our technology platform – Keystone – serves the needs of retirement savers globally, and we are now active on four continents. Keystone is specifically designed to help governments and financial services organisations to serve their citizens' and customers' retirement saving and spending needs. Smart’s team of engineers, researchers and user...

September 22, 2023
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22Sep

Eggs and Baskets: Lifecycle Portfolio Dynamics

By Loretti Dobrescu, Akshay Shanker, Hazel Bateman, Ben Rhodri Newell & Susan Thorp  Housing and pension wealth are two major contributors to the quality of old-age provision. Here we study the interplay between these two asset classes using the impact of changes in saving incentives on wealth accumulation across the lifetime. To do so, we build and estimate a dynamic lifecycle model of saving and portfolio choice featuring risky earnings, lumpy housing with collateralized borrowing, and financial assets inside and...

September 22, 2023
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22Sep

Motivated Saving: The Impact of Projections on Retirement Contributions

By George Smyrnis, Hazel Bateman, Loretti Dobrescu, Ben R. Newell & Susan Thorp Projections of future benefits can assist pension plan participants prepare for retirement. Here we measure the effects of projections of retirement incomes and lump sum balances on voluntary contributions and plan interactions of retirement savers. Data from a two-year field trial in a large Australian pension plan show that the frequency and average amount of participants’ voluntary contributions and interactions with the plan rose significantly in the...

September 22, 2023
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19Sep

Ghana. NPRA to prosecute employers who default in paying pensions

The National Pensions Regulatory Authority (NPRA) will continue to track all defaulting employers and put them before the law courts to retrieve the pension monies due employees. Mr. David Tetteh-Amey Abbey, the Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO), NPRA, said the Authority would do this to demonstrate its commitment to the financial well-being of employees and their families. “This is what makes the Authority great. It is imperative that we emphasise the significance of regular contributions to pension schemes,” he said. Mr. Abbey...

September 19, 2023
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15Sep

2023 401 (k) Participant Study

By Charles Schwab  • The 2023 401(k) Participant study is an online study conducted by Logica Research. • The study was conducted from April 19 through May 2, 2023. • 1,000 401(k) plan participants completed the survey. • Ages 21-70 • Work for companies with 25+ employees that have 401(k) plans • Currently contribute to their companies’ 401(k) plans • Survey respondents include participants served by approximately 15 different retirement plan providers. • The typical (median) survey length was 10 minutes. Read book “here”

September 15, 2023
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15Sep

Mobile Apps Emerge as a Critical Tool for Retirement Plan Providers

Amid ongoing market volatility, it’s little wonder that plan participants are keeping a close eye on their retirement account balances, and they increasingly are doing so via mobile apps. As a result, mobile apps have taken center stage as critical tool for retirement investors, according to J.D. Power’s 2023 U.S. Retirement Plan Digital Experience Study released Sept. 14. And while improved market performance has helped lift overall satisfaction with retirement plan digital tools, for firms that want to differentiate and increase customer...

September 15, 2023
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05Sep

US. What Public Pensions Could Do for Private-Sector Retirees

Once upon a time, before the era of 401(k) plans and takeover capitalists eviscerating many company pension funds, defined-benefit pension plans were America’s primary supplement to Social Security. Back then, the actuarial assumptions were generally reasonable, even for the public pension systems, before some of the latter strayed down the path of unsustainable benefits promises and fishy math. Needless to say, times have changed, and nowadays the vast majority of Americans have very few guarantees of lifetime income other...

September 5, 2023
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05Sep

UK. One in five cut back or axe pension saving – risking a poorer retirement

One in five people have cut pension contributions or stopped saving for retirement due to tighter household budgets, research reveals. Men, younger people and higher earners are the most likely to have pared back or axed pension contributions altogether, despite the serious damage this inflicts to their long term finances. Inflation also means people need to save up even bigger pensions than ever to fund a decent old age. Some 14 per cent of people have stopped saving into their pension and 8...

September 5, 2023
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04Sep

US. Biden’s pension relief flows to IG bonds

A large part of this infusion is making its way into the bond market this year, either in the form of investments in highly rated corporate paper or US Treasury debt. “A lot of money is coming from the pension relief provided by the government,” said a senior DCM banker. The Special Financial Assistance programme is intended for so-called Taft-Hartley pension plans, such as those run by labour unions like the Teamsters, which represents millions of truck drivers and delivery workers...

September 4, 2023
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